List of Lessons:
In this lesson you will learn how to greet people
What to say when you meet someone.
Like in English, in Italian you will greet people in different ways depending on the moment
of the day.
| Italian | English |
| Buongiorno | Good morning |
| Buonasera | Good afternoon |
| Buonasera | Good evening |
| Buonanotte | Good night |
| Ciao | Hi! |
|
As you can note, there isn't an Italian version for the English "good afternoon".
We use "buonasera" instead."Buongiorno" and "buonasera" are also used when you meet someone and you want to greet them in a formal
way. When you meet someone you're in an informal relation with, you can say "Ciao".
What to say when you take your leave from somebody
Again, there're a lot of way to take one's leave form somebody, depending on how formal the
relationship is.
| Italian | English |
| Ciao | See you! |
| (Arrivederci)A presto / Ci vediamo | See you soon! |
| (Arrivederci)A dopo / Ci vediamo dopo | see you later |
| Arrivederla | See you (formal) |
| Addio | Farewell |
|
"Ciao", "Ci vediamo" and "A dopo" are pretty unformal way of taking one's leave from somebody. You could use
"A presto" insted of "Ci vediamo", but the latter is far more common. "A presto" is often used in film, to stress the sadness of
the farewell. Use "Addio" is you're greeting someone who is going to the war, or a dead one. Using this word, you're that you don't
expect to see the adressee again. If you want to be more formal, simply repeat the greeting in the first table
("Buongiorno" or "Buonasera") depending on the time of the day.
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Cardinal Numbers:
Cardinal number, apart form "milione-i" and "miliardo-i" are invariable.
| Number | Pronunciation | Number | Pronunciation |
| 1 | uno | 17 | diciassette |
| 2 | due | 18 | diciotto |
| 3 | tre | 19 | diciannove |
| 4 | quattro | 20 | venti |
| 5 | cinque | 30 | trenta |
| 6 | sei | 40 | quaranta |
| 7 | sette | 50 | cinquanta |
| 8 | otto | 60 | sessanta |
| 9 | nove | 70 | settanta |
| 10 | dieci | 80 | ottanta |
| 11 | undici | 90 | novanta |
| 12 | dodici | 100 | cento |
| 13 | tredici | 200 | duecento |
| 14 | quattordici | 1000 | mille |
| 15 | quindici | 2000 | duemila |
| 16 | sedici | 1.000.000 | un milione |
Ordinal Numbers:
Ordinal numbers are "-o" adjectives. The first ten are to be learned by memory:
| Number | Pronunciation | Number | Pronunciation |
| 1st | primo | 2nd | secondo |
| 3rd | terzo | 4th | quarto |
| 5th | quinto | 6th | sesto |
| 7th | settimo | 8th | ottavo |
| 9th | nono | 10th | decimo |
The numbers after the tenth are still "-o" adjectives, but are regular in their formation.
You have to put the cardinal number:
ventuno twentyone
take away the final "-o" in order to get the stem of the adjective and add the desinence "-esimo":
ventunesimo twentyfirst
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Here are the nouns used to indicate the members of family.
| Singular |
Plural |
English |
| l'uomo |
gli uomini |
man |
| la donna |
le donne |
woman |
| il bambino |
i bambini |
child |
| la bambina |
le bambine |
female child |
| l'adolescente |
gli adolescenti |
the male teenager |
| l'adolescente |
le adolescenti |
the female teenager |
| il ragazzo |
i ragazzi |
boy |
| la ragazza |
le ragazze |
girl |
| il marito |
i mariti |
husband |
| il padre |
i padri |
father |
| il papà |
i papà |
dad |
| lo zio |
gli zii |
uncle |
| il nonno |
i nonni |
grandfather |
| la moglie |
le mogli |
wife |
| la madre |
le madri |
mother |
| la mamma |
le mamme |
mum |
| la zia |
le zie |
aunt |
| il fratello |
i fratelli |
brother |
| la sorella |
le sorelle |
sister |
| il figlio |
i figli |
son |
| la figlia |
le figlie |
daughter |
| il nipote |
i nipoti |
nephew |
| la nipote |
le nipoti |
niece |
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